The Love Your Body Campaign Takes It to the Streets

A Collective Post by NOW Interns

Whenever you see someone with a clipboard in hand approaching you on a street corner, you usually attempt to make a beeline the other way. You may give them a passing smile or a quick “no thank you,” but your main goal is avoid them without having to give them your contact information or listen to their scripted spiel. So why did the NOW interns venture out to the National Mall in Washington, D.C., clipboards in hand, with the goal of surveying passers-by?

Let us explain.

Here at the National NOW office we’re getting very excited about the 2010 National NOW Conference coming up in July. This year’s theme is “Loving Our Bodies, Changing the World.” After numerous meetings filled with planning, scheduling and note-taking, the NOW interns decided to take a step back and refocus on the theme and purpose of the conference: loving our bodies. We wanted to know what women love about their bodies — so we decided we should ask them.

On a sunny, 80 degree afternoon, we left the NOW office and headed for the National Mall, where we knew we’d find hordes of tourists enjoying the beautiful weather. Our goal was to find out what women love about their bodies and how they reacted to being asked our simple question: “What do you love about your body?”

In the hour we spent canvassing the National Mall, about 20 women were willing to stop and chat with us. Here are a few of the responses we received:

“I love my hair.” –Mercedes

“I love my heart.” –Jessica

“I love my eyes.” –Fanny

“I love my body because I am healthy.” –Susan

“I love my body because it’s still working” –Lia

In need of more responses, we decided to utilize our social networking skills by posting the question on our Facebook walls. Here are some of the Facebook responses we received: “I love getting my first freckles of the season.” –Laura

“I love my butt (and the way it looks when I dance), and the way my eyes squint when I laugh!” –Keisha

“I love my nicely-sized breasts and muscular, athletic legs.” –Ashley

“I love my face, specifically my eyes and my nose.” –Meghan

“I love my hair. Which is kind of funny because once upon a time there is nothing I would have wanted to change more.” –Melanie

“I love my stomach, and my cleavage when I have it, and my red wavy-ish hair, and my butt, and my feet, and my lips, and my smile. I also like my teeth and nose. I really like my body right now, not gonna lie.” –Greta

Through this experience we realized that women of all ages, races, shapes, and sizes are eager to talk about what they love about their bodies, but we want to hear from more of you! Add to the conversation by telling us what you love about your body in the comments.

The NOW interns encourage you to attend the 2010 National NOW Conference in Boston, Mass., July 2-4. We hope to see you there!

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